Alan Williams – A Values-Led Architect of Service and Kindness
Alan Williams is a values-driven leadership advisor, author, and founder of SERVICEBRAND GLOBAL. With a career spanning hospitality, global finance, consulting, and thought leadership, he helps organizations turn values into lived behaviors that drive sustained performance. Known for the philosophy “values are for living… not laminating,” Alan works internationally with leaders committed to building human-centered cultures grounded in purpose, service, and kindness.
Alan Williams still returns to a piece of advice his grandmother gave him when he was a young boy: follow your nose. It was not guidance about drifting or guessing. It was an invitation to pay attention to values, to energy, to people, and to trust that when those elements align, direction reveals itself. Decades later, after a career spanning hospitality, a variety of sectors, and consulting, that advice remains his compass. In a world increasingly focused on certainty, control, and prediction, Alan’s leadership journey offers a quieter but enduring alternative. Clarity comes from living your values consistently and letting purpose shape the path forward.
Growing Up With Values Before Vocabulary
Alan was raised on a council estate in Plymouth, England, by his mother. Resources were limited, but expectations were not. Effort mattered. Integrity mattered. Respect had to be earned. A scholarship to Devonport High School for Boys opened academic doors, but it was outside the classroom where some of the most formative lessons took root.
As a teenager, Alan became involved with the Friends of the Earth environmental organization and helped establish a garden sharing initiative that matched people who had unused gardens with those who wanted to grow food. At the time, it was simply a practical solution to a local need. Years later, he recognized the deeper pattern. It set the tone for a lifelong approach to creating values driven concepts and operating models that generate sustained value, often from nothing, by connecting people through shared purpose.
His first job was in hospitality, working summer mornings in a hotel preparing tea and coffee, clearing tables, and hoovering the restaurant after breakfast service. The work was modest, but the lesson was lasting. Service happens at the frontline. Culture is felt, not announced. How people are treated in ordinary moments shapes how organizations are remembered.
Alan went on to study Hotel and Catering Administration at the University of Surrey, grounding his people centered instincts in operational discipline. Later, executive education at London Business School sharpened his strategic perspective. Even as his responsibilities expanded, one belief stayed constant. Employees are not a support function. They are the brand.
From Service to Strategy
In 2005, Alan founded SERVICEBRAND GLOBAL, a consultancy dedicated to helping organizations align brand identity, employee engagement, and customer experience. The premise was simple but demanding. Strategy only matters if it shows up in everyday behavior.
His career continued to span hospitality, facilities management, and large scale corporate environments. At Barclays Capital, he led a global service transformation to implement a consistent service brand across offices worldwide. Later, at MITIE, he held senior leadership roles focused on relationship management, retention, and innovation. Across each environment, the challenge was the same. How do organizations ensure that what they say they stand for is reflected in what people actually do?
That question led to the creation of 31Practices, a practical framework designed to translate values into lived behaviors. Rather than prescribing rigid rules, it provided organizations with adaptable practices that frontline teams could own. The impact was both cultural and commercial.
One senior partner described Alan’s contribution by noting that “he has the ability to take what is often an overly complicated subject and simplify it so it becomes meaningful at all levels.” Another reflected that “many others have over complicated service related values, while Alan’s 31Practices is inclusive in its design and delivers results.” Across industries and scales, the response was consistent. Alan removed friction between intention and action.
Values That Are Lived, Not Laminated
Over time, Alan’s work expanded beyond individual organizations into wider conversations about leadership, culture, and kindness. He co authored several books on customer experience and values based performance, challenging leaders to rethink how service, strategy, and humanity intersect.
One phrase came to define his philosophy and resonated widely: “Values are for living… not laminating.” It captured a simple truth. Values displayed on walls, mugs, or presentations are meaningless unless they are reflected in decisions and behaviors, especially under pressure.
This idea became the foundation for his newsletter, Values Are For Living…, and for a growing body of thought leadership addressing modern leadership challenges such as uncertainty, technological change, and cultural fragmentation. His work consistently reframes kindness not as sentiment, but as strategy.
Alan’s influence also extended into global values communities. As founder of the Global Values Alliance, and as a board director of the British Quality Foundation and the UK Values Alliance, he helped shape conversations about what responsible, values led leadership looks like in practice.
His co creation of the ValuesJam card game has sparked meaningful values conversations in workplaces, schools, and communities around the world. The launch of ValuesJam Junior reflects his belief that values literacy should begin early and be lived daily.
A long standing collaborator described him as “a leader with remarkable vision and determination who brings values to life in ways that build confidence among customers and stakeholders alike.” Others emphasize his authenticity, noting that “he speaks from the heart, connects easily, and delivers results that speak for themselves.”
At the center of this work are Alan’s personal core values, which have remained consistent throughout his life and career: Excellence, Creation, Kindness, Adaptability, and Enjoyment. These values are not aspirational statements. They are practical guides that shape his choices, relationships, and leadership.
Vision for the Future: Trusting the Path That Emerges
When asked about his current focus, Alan does not list titles or targets. Instead, he returns to his grandmother’s advice. Following your nose means being true to your values and paying attention to the energy of people and projects aligned with them. It means trusting that meaningful opportunities emerge through curiosity, service, and relationships rather than rigid plans.
Today, his work includes values driven consulting with progressive leaders internationally and in the UK, authorship projects including a children’s book about kindness and an upcoming adult title, The Humanity Code, involvement with a conservation education NGO in Africa, immersive technology ventures, and the k20 Kindness Without Borders initiative. The k20 aims to create a conducive environment for members of the global kindness community to connect, collaborate, and create together.
His advice to the next generation is direct and grounded. Be true to what you believe in. Work hard. Remember that respect is earned.
Alan Williams’ leadership story does not follow a straight line, and that is precisely the point. It demonstrates that sustained impact comes not from control, but from alignment. By following his nose, he has built a body of work that proves values, when lived deliberately, can shape cultures, strengthen organizations, and quietly change the world.
Editorial Note
Alan Williams’ journey is a reminder that leadership is less about certainty and more about consistency. In times of complexity and change, his work offers a grounded invitation to reflect, to act with intention, and to remember that values only matter when they show up in what we choose to do next.
